Austrian police fine students for waving Israeli flags

Austrian police detain, fine, Jewish students who were attacked for holding Israeli flags during an anti-Israel demonstration.

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Haim Lev, 11/01/18 10:38

Israeli flag

Yosef Mizrahi/ TPS

Austrian police fined three Jewish students for waving an Israeli flag at a pro-Palestinian Authority demonstration calling for the murder of Jews.

"It started with a few words in English, and some booing of the US and Israel," said Adam Geiger, one of the students present at the demonstration. "And then they started shouting the classics - 'intifada,' 'Israel kills children,' and calling for the murder of Jews."

In response students started taking pictures of themselves holding Israeli flags. What happened next was completely unexpected.

Out of the blue, someone stepped out from nowhere and began attacking them. Local police, instead of protecting the victims, chose, according to the students, to detain them and carry out a thorough body investigation.

The students were later fined 300 euros ($358.24) - 100 euros ($119.41) each - for disturbing order at the demonstration by waving Israeli flags.